Health and Wash
MATI HEALTH CARE AND EYE CARE
MATI initiated health services in 2005 for a Scheduled Caste Hindu minority (Dalit) population living near the MATI Head office in Sankipara with the aim of promoting the wellness and good health of the urban and rural poor. In 2009, the MATI Primary Health Care Center (MPHCC) was built in the premises of the MATI headquarters, increasing the services for the poor and very poor people in the district of Mymensingh, where MATI operates its activities. Over time, the service catchment area gradually increased to include the villages in Bangladesh’s Mymensingh, Sherpur, and Jamalpur districts, and the urban slums under the Mymensingh City Corporation.
In Mymensingh city, there are two health centers where the general public can easily get primary treatments from these health centers. Besides this, health workers go to the field level in the working area of Mati for providing primary health services.
MATI EYE CARE CENTRE, HUZURIKANDA
MATI, along with a German organization called “Foundation Bridge Balingen-Bangladesh (FBBB)” and the BNSB Eye Hospital in Mymensingh, provides eye care services to underprivileged residents in their area. They offer free checkups, treatment, and eyeglasses, and even work to prevent eye diseases from getting worse. In some cases, they can even provide LASIK surgery. To improve their services, FBBB is helping MATI build a special medical center focused on eye care at the Huzurikanda site. Additionally, MATI collaborates with other eye hospitals in Bangladesh, including Dr. K. Zaman BNSB Eye Hospital to provide more options for people in need.
PHYSIOTHERAPY SERVICE TO THE CHILDREN OF SPECIAL NEEDS
In the year 2024, MATI continued to provide physiotherapy services for the children of special needs coming from the surrounding villages of our Nakla station at Huzurikanda village. At present, 19 such children have been getting the services from the expert physiotherapy staff who are trained from the volunteer experts come from Germany.
During the reporting period, the centre faced an unforeseen challenge which is the political instability in the country and the regime change in August 2024. This instability had a direct impact on the ability of many anticipated foreign specialists to visit Mymensingh and provide their services. However, at the end of the year the situation was improved.
WASH ACTIVITIES
As part of its ongoing savings and credit program, MATI has been providing crucial credit support to families. Beyond financial aid, MATI’s development partners also step in to address the critical needs of clean drinking water and sanitation, recognizing that a significant portion of families in their operational areas still lack these basic facilities. This support often comes in the form of assistance for installing sanitary latrines and drinking water pumps or tube wells. A notable example from 2024 saw Stiftung Brücke providing aid to 54 families for the installation of tube wells and sanitary latrines in their homes.
